The present application is related generally to vehicle service equipment for use in the alignment, calibration, and inspection of various onboard vehicle sensors for monitoring external surroundings, and more specifically, to a calibration fixture for use in the alignment, calibration, and inspection of range-finding sensors located onboard a vehicle undergoing a service or inspection.
Within the automotive industry there are an increasing number of vehicle manufacturers producing vehicles equipped with onboard sensors for monitoring the external surroundings of the vehicles. These systems include Lane Departure Warning systems (LDW), Lane Keep Assist systems (LKA), Blind Spot Detection systems (BSD), collision mitigation braking systems (CMBS), Adaptive Cruise Control systems (ACC), peripheral vision camera systems, reverse camera systems (backup alarms), and night vision camera systems. As vehicle sensor systems become more advanced, onboard systems rely on input received from these monitoring sensors to provide driver warnings, automate vehicle functions (such as parallel parking), and implement safety features (such as automatic collision avoidance braking and automatically maintaining vehicle spacing).
With increased reliance on the data obtained from these monitoring sensors, it is critical that the data provide an accurate representation of the operating environment for the vehicle, such as the location of surrounding objects, speed differentials between the vehicle and the surrounding objects, and movement of the vehicle itself relative to the surrounding objects. The procedures for alignment, calibration, and/or inspection of the monitoring sensors vary from vehicle to vehicle and from manufacturer to manufacturer, due to the wide range of different types of monitoring sensors entering the market. As seen in FIGS. 1-3, monitoring and range-finding onboard vehicle sensors often require mechanical alignment relative to the vehicle body or to a measured alignment angle of the vehicle, such as the thrust line. Some sensors require calibration with the use of reflective or retro-reflective targets as seen in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4-6, disposed at predetermined positions in the sensor field of view, and which are a significant distance away from the vehicle. Often, this distance may necessitate placement of the calibration fixture at a location which is outside of a typical vehicle service area as seen in FIG. 10, necessitating special arrangements for conducting the service or inspection of the sensors.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a target or calibration fixture for use in the alignment, calibration, and inspection of range-finding onboard vehicle sensors which can be used within the close confines of a typical vehicle service area, and with a variety of monitoring sensors and/or vehicles.